1. Technology Field
The disclosure relates generally to the field of data and content distribution and delivery via a content distribution or other network. In one exemplary aspect, the disclosure relates to the selective delivery of supplemental or secondary content such as advertising or promotions.
2. Description of Related Technology
“Nielsen Ratings” are a well-known system of evaluating the viewing habits of cross sections of the population. When collecting Nielsen ratings, companies use statistical techniques to develop a sample population which is a cross section of a larger national population. Theoretically, the viewing habits of the sample population will mirror the larger population. The company then measures the viewing habits of the population to identify, among other things, what programs the population is watching as well as the time and frequency at which those programs are watched. This information is then extrapolated to gain insight on the viewing habits of the larger population. Historically, the Nielsen system has been the primary source of audience measurement information in the television industry. The Nielsen system, therefore, affects various aspects of television including inter alia, advertising rates, schedules, viability of particular shows, etc., and has been also recently expanded from measuring an audience of program content to measuring an audience of advertising (i.e., Nielsen ratings may be provided for advertisements themselves).
The Nielsen system collects data regarding audiences either (i) by asking viewers of various demographics to keep a written record of the television shows they watch throughout the day and evening, or (ii) by using “meters,” which are small devices connected to televisions in selected homes or which listen for an audio tone (aka “watermark”) which electronically gathers the viewing habits of the home and transmits the information nightly to Nielsen or a proxy entity over a phone line or other connection. See the discussion regarding the NAVE (Nielsen Audio Video Encoding) system provided infra.
For media content providers such as cable and satellite companies and the like, a major issue is how to more accurately target population segments for advertising campaigns based on particular characteristics of an audience, opportunities for insertion (or replacement) of an advertisement, and other factors. It is most desirable for advertisers to have advertisements for products or services that are targeted to a particular demographic to be viewed by that demographic; such targeting can be accomplished at least in part based on data such as that provided by the aforementioned Nielsen system.
However, the foregoing needs and desires of the service providers and advertisers must be balanced against those of their customers (subscribers), in that it is ultimately subscriber satisfaction which keeps a given individual or household or business using that service provider. One facet of this subscriber satisfaction relates to not unnecessarily inundating the subscriber with advertisements or promotions. Subscriber frustration can readily result from, e.g.: (i) repetition of the same advertisement or promotion over and over, especially within a comparatively short period; (ii) advertisements or promotions which are unduly long (whether taken individually, or in combination with other advertisements or promotions), so as to keep a user away from the primary programming content (e.g., television show, movie, game, etc.); and/or (iii) advertising or promotional content which is not applicable or even inappropriate for viewing by a given user at, e.g., a specific time, or in general.
Aside from the foregoing “frustration” aspect, many television viewers today simply pay less attention to video commercials in broadcast channels, as they can merely change channels and switch to other programming on other channels during commercial breaks; the wider choice of programming currently offered by service providers gives the user more options to watch alternate content during advertisements. Users may also skip the commercials when a consumer watches a program previously recorded, such as on a DVR. Users may also simply walk away from the television and/or engage in some other activity. The proliferation of mobile computing devices such as laptops, smartphones, and tablets in consumer households has only exacerbated this problem, as such devices tend to draw consumers' attention away from the television during the commercial.
Hence, broadcast video commercials could become less engaging for the television audience over time, and less effective in getting the advertiser's message across to the viewers (and emphasizing their brand and products).
Network Content Storage
Network-based content recording and storage (such as e.g., the exemplary “Start Over” and “Look Back” network DVR services offered by the Assignee hereof) allow users of a network to obtain what would otherwise be “live” content (e.g., linear television broadcasts or the like) at some time subsequent to their actual airing, thereby enabling a user to view programming which otherwise would be missed. These systems typically receive instructions from the user as to which programming they want to view, and the network “cloud” streams the requested content to that user. Variants of these types of systems either receive prior instructions from a user before the broadcast of the live event (e.g., “record program XYZ airing on channel 123 at 8 pm on Jan. 1, 2012”), or alternatively store various content based on some other criteria (e.g., popularity), and then allow the user a period of time to watch it.
Such “network DVR” systems typically will disable trick mode functionality (i.e., fast forward), which would otherwise allow a viewer of the cloud-recorded content to skip over an advertisement or promotion. This is often a quid pro quo for the user having the ability to recapture via the network content that they otherwise would have missed; i.e., “you can watch the (live) program you want, but you'll have to watch the advertisements also.” Regardless of the motivation, such “must watch” features are often a source of annoyance or aggravation to viewers, and hence may significantly reduce subscriber satisfaction with the network DVR service (or the service provider, programmer, and advertiser individually or collectively).
Hence, there is a need for improved methods and apparatus which effectively balance the service provider's and advertiser's needs relating to secondary content exposure and penetration (and hence ultimately revenue derived therefrom), and the desire of many subscribers to avoid such secondary content whenever possible (or at least that which is either overly repetitive, too long, or inapplicable/inappropriate for their viewing needs).
These methods and apparatus would also ideally be provided using substantially extant network infrastructure and components, and would be compatible with a number of different client device and delivery systems including both wired and wireless technologies.